Cherelle Parker, David Oh cast their ballots morning of Election Day
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Democrat Cherelle Parker and Republican David Oh cast their ballots in the Philadelphia mayoral election Tuesday morning.
Oh voted at the William C. Longstreth School in Kingsessing while Parker was at the Masjidullah - Center for Human Excellence mosque in West Oak Lane.
Oh smiled and waved as he headed into the voting booth. He said the city is ready for change and that voters want a safer, cleaner city.
Parker spoke emotionally about being raised by a single mother and being called to public service.
You can hear more from the candidates as they cast their ballots in the video above.
Monday night, the candidates were still on the campaign trail as they made their last pitch to voters before Election Day.
At the Second Mount Zion Baptist Church in West Philadelphia, Parker joined members of the clergy, thanking them for their support and urging voters to get their "souls to the polls."
RELATED: Election 2023 guide: What to know for Pennsylvania, New Jersey general elections
"No one should expect me to walk like, talk like, act like, think like, govern like any other people who has served as mayor of this city," Parker said. "Because not one of them has ever been like me."
Parker emerged from a deep Democratic primary field to cement her spot in Tuesday's race. She said what the city needs right now is a unifier.
"Working at the local, state and federal government with the business community and philanthropic community on our side, we will bring some hope and pride back to our city," Parker said.
RELATED: Cherelle Parker wants to make Philadelphia "safest, cleanest, greenest big city" in US
Parker enters Tuesday's race as a heavy favorite. But Oh is also feeling confident because he believes Parker has been absent on the campaign trail.
"We're missing an opponent," Oh said. "That's the main thing that's stood out. I mean, it's just a bizarre situation."
Meanwhile, Oh said he's spent months on the ground talking with voters, helping him understand people's needs. And in the heavily Democratic city, Oh believes he's been able to build support across party lines.
"It's not that they like Republicans," Oh said. "They just want someone who will deliver to them what they should have had all along."
RELATED: David Oh vies to become Philadelphia's first Republican mayor since 1952
On Tuesday, voters will decide who leads the city for at least the next four years. And both of these candidates believe they're the right people to bring change to City Hall.
"People want toes stepped on," Oh said. "They want someone in the mayor's office who is not part of the existing status quo."
"The vision is clear, now we've got to bring the best and brightest people together who share in that vision to ensure that it's implemented," Parker said.
